Improvement in vehicle-springs



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

REUEL W. WARE, 0E PORT JERvIs, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN VEHICLE-SPRINGS.

Specification forming part ofLetters Patent No. 157,656, dated December 8, 1374; application led January 31, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, REUEL WILLARD WARE,

of Port Jervis, in the county of Orange and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Carriage- Springs, ot' which the following is a speciiication:

l It is the object of my invention to produce a carriagesprin g of nearly uniform elasticity, whether under a light or under a heavy load; to combine the spring and reach or couplingrod so as to Work together and assist each other in sustaining the load, strengthen and add elasticity to the spring, hold it in check, and prevent a sudden reaction or dying upward immediately after a plunge or depression; to dispense with unnecessary weight, and to cheapen the cost of construction.

The subject-matter claimed will be hereinafter speciiied.

ln the accompanyin g drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of my improved spring, and Fig. 2 a similar View oi' a modilied form of the same.

A yielding or elastic coupling-rod or reach, A, preferably of wood, but which Ymay be ot' steel or other metal, or metal and wood combined, is connected to the rear axle and front bolster of' the vehicle by means of bolts, clips,

l or other suitable i'astenings, With such additional brace-rods or angle-ties betweenthe bolsters or axles and-the reach as may be desired, or are necessary to produce lateral stability. The reach lhas a camber or stands crowning, in which position it is sustained' by a steel spring', B, attached at its ends to the reach by links or ties C, or in any other equivalent manner, admitting of a backward and forward or oscillating movementof the spring as it elongates and contracts when working under a load. A seat or body bolster or rocker, D, is-fastened to this combination spring, composed of the reach or coupling and the steel spring, by bolts or other suitable means. A spreading-block, F, is, by preference, secured between the reach and spring, although, if desired, it may be omitted without materially affecting the operation of the spring.

Two or more springs, each composed ofthe parts A and B, are intended to be used together, placed parallel, and extending from the front bolster or rocker to the rear axle, as described.

The piece of which the reach is composed and the steel spring are so adjusted each to the other that When applied to the carriage the piece or reach is curved or cambering, as shown, and is held in this position by the upward pressure ofthe spring B upon the block E, (or by pressure at the point of contact ot' the spring at its center with the reach, should the block be dispensed With,) until the load of the carriage becomes equal to or greater than the pressure ot the spring B when the strip A is restored to a level position, or assumes a deiiected position below a level line, and relieves the spring of so much of the weight of the load as is necessary to straighten or detlect the strip.

It is obvious that the reach may be so formed that its camber is independent ot or not formed by the pressure of the spring, in which case the result `Would be the same.

In Fig. 2 I have shown the steel spring upon the top of the reach, the ends of the spring resting on the reach, by which construction the ties or shackles C are dispensed with, While the operation is essentially the same.

By my construction a cheap, light spring is produced.

By the joint vaction of the spring and reach injurious shocks and jars are, in a great measure, avoided, and by means of the movable points oi' support ot' the spring it is also relieved of the severe strain to which carriage- Asprings are usually subjected when suddenly depressed under heavy loads.

I claim as my inventionrlhe combination of a yielding reach and a spring centrally connected therewith, and having its ends capable of moving endwise on the reach, as set forth.

In testimony whereofl I have hereunto subscribed my name.

REUEL WILLARD WARE. Witnesses:

W. G. MIDDLETON, W. B. STILSON. 

